UMUR "Pathei Mathos" is an EP release by Norwegian experimental music act Manes. The EP was released through Aftermath Music in June 2024. Although it´s been quite a few years since the last major release from Manes, they have kept themselves busy releasing a couple of conpilations as well as a couple of singles since the release of "Slow Motion Death Sequence" (Manes fifth full-length studio album, released in August 2018). They have also released the black metal "Innerst i mørket" full-length studio album under the Manii monicker in September 2023.

The EP features four tracks and a total playing time of 23:40, and as something new most of the vocals are female clean vocals performed by M. Hellem (Martyra). Manes still use ambient electronic elements to create atmosphere, but the music features rock/metal instrumentation too and actually reminds me of late 90s/early 90s The Gathering. The Swedes in Paatos is another valid reference (and artists like Atrox and Madder Mortem), and on this particular release the Ulver clone accusations, which Manes are often subjected to, aren´t true at all.

"Pathei Mathos" features a nice raw sound production and the addition of a female lead vocalist has not meant that the music has become more polished or mainstream oriented. It´s still dark and somewhat heavy rock/metal music with ambient electronic elements and a melancholic atmosphere (the music also features gothic rock/metal leanings). Fans of especially The Gathering should find a lot to enjoy on this release. To my ears Manes aren´t as unique sounding on "Pathei Mathos" as they previously have been, but there´s nothing wrong with the quality of the music. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Young Skeleton" is a single release by Norwegian experimental music act Manes. The single was released through Aftermath Music in April 2020. It´s the first release featuring new music from Manes since the release of their fifth full-length studio album "Slow Motion Death Sequence" from August 2018. Both tracks from the single are exclusive to this release.

The "Young Skeleton" track is a predominantly acoustic track featuring vocals and guitar, but as the song progresses more elements and layers of instruments are added to create atmosphere, and it´s overall a nicely melancholic rock song. "Mouth of the Volcano" opens slightly darker and heavier, but still features a mostly acoustic/non-distorted approach, although layers of sounds and samples are heard sooner on this tracks than it is on the "Young Skeleton" track. Around one minute into the song it turns heavy as distortion and both male clean- and growling vocals are added (and later female vocals). It´s actually quite the brilliant track. heavy, dark, and featuring an eerie haunting atmosphere.

It´s interesting how different these tracks are to the material found on "Slow Motion Death Sequence" and Manes have arguably not sounded this dark and heavy (and metal oriented) since "Vilosophe" (their second full-length studio album from May 2003). A nice little single release this one and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Be All End All" is the 4th full-length studio album by Norwegian experimental rock act Manes. The album was released through Debemur Morti Productions in October 2014. It´s been quite a few years since the release of "How the World Came to an End (2007)", but there have been signs of life in the intermediate years in the form of the "Solve et Coagula (2009)" and the "Teeth, Toes and Other Trinkets (2014)" compilation albums. Tor-Helge Skei, who is the mainman behind Manes, has been quite busy though as he released albums with both his depressive black metal project Manii in 2013, and with his experimental dark rock project Lethe in 2014. The "Vntrve" EP, which was released in August 2014 and features "A Deathpact Most Imminent" and "Broken Fire" (in an alternate version), which are both tracks that are also featured on "Be All End All", was however the first sign that a new full-length studio album by Manes was on it´s way.

The two tracks on the "Vntrve" EP more or less represent the sound on "Be All End All". Stylistically the music is a dark, electronic oriented type of rock, that at times is similar sounding to some of Ulver´s post black metal-era releases. There weren´t many metal elements left on "How the World Came to an End (2007)", and that tendency continues on "Be All End All", which features very few heavy moments with distorted guitars. It´s to great effect when the metallic tinged guitars appear though, as the rest of the music is predominantly more subdued and melancholic in sound. Besides the few more rock/metal oriented moments on the album (which are indeed very few), the music is mostly atmospheric and pretty laid back experimental rock with a slight avant garde edge (featuring apocalyptic themes, alien sci-fi atmospheres, keyboards, and electronic effects in addition to regular rock instrumentation of guitars, bass, drums, and vocals).

The material are generally well composed and it´s overall a pleasant melancholic sounding album with some clever compositional depth. The sound production is detailed and professional sounding, and "Be All End All" is on most parameters a quality release by Manes. I wouldn´t call it groundbreaking and sometimes the similarities to Ulver´s music is a bit too apparent, but a 3.5 star (70%) is still well deserved.

UMUR "Vntrve" is an EP release by Norwegian experimental rock/metal act Manes. The EP was released through Debemur Morti Productions in August 2014. 250 copies were pressed on 7" vinyl but the EP is also available as a "name your price" option on the band´s Bandcamp profile. Manes haven´t released a studio album since "How the World Came to an End (2007)", but "Vntrve" is meant to be a teaser for their 4th full-length studio album "Be All End All", which is planned for release in october 2014.

"Vntrve" features 2 tracks and a full playing time of 8:45 minutes. "A Deathpact Most Imminent" is featured in the same version which will also appear on "Be All End All", while "Broken Fire" (which will also be featured on "Be All End All") is featured here in a "Slow Boat Alternative Mix".

You never know what to expect from a new Manes release as they´ve experimentet quite a lot with their sound since their early black metal days. Their next step was industrial/progressive metal and then a dark trip hop oriented sound with occasional use of rap vocals. A pretty interesting but at times also rather odd development in sound. The music on "Vntrve" is a dark experimental type of rock music with ambient electronic elements and a reference to Ulver is valid. While Manes are usually considered a metal act, you wouldn´t know that by listening to these two tracks, because there are few distorted guitars on the EP and if there are, they are not played in a riff oriented fashion. The tracks are both well composed and quite intriguing but not complex.

"Vntrve" is well produced. The sound production provides the music with the right dark atmosphere and "Vntrve" is all in all a solid and relatively promising teaser EP and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

Gallifrey An Unexplosive Return First and foremost, I'm glad Manes are back. It's strange, this is about the fourth or fifth band that I've got into recently just before a reunion, so it doesn't really feel as if they've been gone for long. But it's been seven years since Manes dropped How the World Came to an End and for those who were fans at that time, it must feel like an age.

I got into Manes through their 2003 album Vilosophe, which I consider to be one of the most unique and interesting electronic rock records ever, and it is absurd that in the absence of Manes, no other artists have truly developed this style, using rock guitars and melodies with glitchy drums and strangely sampled atmospheres. Tracks like "Death of the Genuine", with the violent drum and bass-style drum samples and epic vocal lines, just have not been paralleled in the eleven years since, at least not in music that I've heard. I'll admit, How The World Came To And End wasn't fully to my liking as much as Vilosophe, as it dropped the focus on the rock and metal elements that made the fusion so interesting, focusing more on trip hop ambience and electronica.

So now, come 2014, and Manes are back. Allegedly, they existed as a re-incarnated black metal band last year for a bit, with Manii, but I really wasn't a huge fan of the sole release, Kollaps, in its depressive/suicidal black metal style, it lacked the ambience and texture of the early Manes black metal releases, and honestly, it was a while before I came to the realization that these two projects were related. We're to expect new material from Manes soon, but for now we have this, a release of miscellaneous recordings from the past two albums, alternate takes, and even a live version, as well as When Dreams Become Nightmares, a release from side project of Manes guitarist Cernunus, Lethe. Teeth, Toes and Other Trinkets is meant to be a 'warm-up' of sorts, to remind us that the bands still exists, and to get rid of some material that may not be relevant to the newer original material.

Although I've often found b-side collections to be quite good, I can't exactly say this one has much promise. From a brief look, it appears we have four unreleased tracks, plus some alternate versions of tracks from Vilosophe and How The World Came to an End, even one with a different title ("One More Room" is actually "White Devil Black Shroud", although I can't actually pick what's different here), and a rather lacklustre and averagely recorded version of "Ende" from Vilosophe, despite that being one of their better tracks.

Of the four new (to my knowledge) tracks, I can say that I quite enjoy "Ease Yourself Back Into Consciousness" with its floating vocal melody reminiscent of material from Vilosophe, particularly "White Devil Black Shroud", but the rest of the tracks don't really bring anything new or interesting, they're just simple electronic/trip hop tracks with the standard Manes vocal over the top.

I think it's a good thing that the label, Debemur Morti, decided to release this at the same time as When Dreams Become Nightmares, so that when Manes fans disappointed in this release come back rather annoyed, they can immediately say "but no, look over there, a Manes album that doesn't suck", and everyone's happy. Sure, as I will point out in my review of that, it has its fair share of shortcomings, at least it has substance.

I can't really give Teeth, Toes and Other Trinkets a really bad rating though, because although it's pretty lacklustre, it was never meant to be anything big. I think that the four tracks here that are new could have been edited to make a nice little EP, but none of the alternate versions here add to anything, especially shoving that live version of "Ende" as the second track, which I'm sure will alienate many people. This isn't a bad release, but it's completely unnecessary, even for big Manes fans. If you're looking for more electronic and trip hop influenced experimental rock, then When Dreams Become Nightmares is right over there, there's nothing to see here.

5.1/10

Originally written for my Facebook page/blog - www.facebook.com/neoprogisbestprog